CHARLOTTE, N.C. – It's the win that shocked fans around the world. 

The U.S. Men's National Team (USMNT) earned its first victory of 2026 with a 3-2 win over Senegal on Sunday at Bank of America Stadium, breaking the Lions of Teranga's 10-game winning streak in the process.

“It was a good American team that we saw today,” Senegal coach Pape Thiaw said in French.

The victory came after consecutive losses to Portugal and Belgium in March and provided a much needed boost of confidence for the Americans less than a month before the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Prior to this match, there were many doubts about the team'a ability to win due to injuries and uncertain personnel choices. This match appeared to quiet some of those previous doubts and restore hope in the buying public who came out to cheer on the 26-man roster revealed last week in New York. 

And the 57,741 fans on hand at the home of the NFL’s Carolina Panthers did just that. They shouted "USA," and rooted on the red, white and blue despite a large contingent of exuberant Senegal fans.

Midfielder Tyler Adams said this is the time to find motivation – two weeks out from the team's June 12 World Cup opener against Paraguay.

Although the friendly against Lions of Teranga meant nothing on paper.

“I think putting out performances like that gets the fans excited because we had energy, we had ambition,” he said. “We paid attention to the details and how we wanted to press. And it was an exciting game.”

The USMNT wasted no time getting on the scoreboard. Defender Sergiño Dest opened the scoring in the seventh minute, finishing from the center of the box after an assist from Christian Pulisic.

Pulisic doubled the lead 13 minutes later, scoring off an assist from Ricardo Pepi to give the Americans a two point lead.

Despite falling behind in the opening 20 minutes, Senegal responded with resilience and controlled much of the match. 

Veteran forward Sadio Mané led the comeback effort, scoring twice in an eight-minute span. His first goal came in the 44th minute after a through ball from Habib Diarra sparked a fast break, cutting the U.S. lead to one before halftime. 

Mané –an African legend for his career scoring wizardry–struck again shortly after the restart, finishing from close range in the 52nd minute to level the match at 2-2.

USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino made 10 substitutions at halftime, effectively creating an entire new lineup for the second half.

The changes paid off in the 63rd minute when striker Folarin Balogun scored the game-winning goal in the first-ever meeting between the United States and Senegal. Balogun nearly added another goal earlier in the half, but a finish in the 49th minute was ruled offside following a VAR review.

Senegal finished with 53 percent possession compared to the United States' 47 percent, but the Americans generated 17 shots and capitalized on key opportunities.

In a press conference after the game, Pochettino said the victory was important not only for the result but also for restoring confidence around the team after recent performances.

"I think it's more important for the environment than for us," he said. "For us, it's important always to win. But the series is important also for the environment to trust us a little bit after the last two games."

Pochettino also praised the mentality shown by the players throughout the match.

"The right attitude, the right commitment from everyone–that is the attitude that we try to find from day one,” he said. “We need to play this way. We want to prove."

Forward Christian Pulisic said the result provides a confidence boost but emphasized there is still work to do before the World Cup begins.

"I mean, it definitely helps us just feeling a little bit more relaxed and confident," he said. "That's a strong team. I think we can feel good about it, but there's still a lot of work for us."

He added that international soccer presents unique challenges because of the limited time national teams have together.

"That's the beauty of international soccer,” he said. “We don't have that much time, and we've got to find ways to work together and win."

Senegal’s supporters made their presence felt throughout the match, with many fans traveling from across the United States to represent the West African nation, while others streamed the game live to supporters unable to attend because of visa restrictions.

Despite the loss, Thiaw expressed confidence in his team’s future, saying, 

“We know that we have the squad for it, we have the team for it, the state of mind is there, and the desire is there.” 

Thiaw said Senegal’s focus remains on preparing for the World Cup and competing against the world’s top teams.

The USMNT will next face Germany in Chicago, IL on June 6 while Senegal will play against Saudi Arabia on June 9.